I wondered why it’s so hard to create habits, at least habits that are good for you. It seems like bad habits just happen. Even if we don’t know how we got the bad habit, it didn’t just happen.
Like snacking at night, before bed, why do some people do that? I used to do that but I had to work to NOT eat at night. That doesn’t make sense because I had to get up and grab something to eat. Sounds easy, just don’t do that. I was weak at night.
Then it hit me, don’t have junk food in the house. They make a conscious effort to not snack at night, build momentum. Give yourself credit for doing the right thing, not the easy or fun thing, but the right thing.
I was reading a newsletter from Arnold Schwarzenegger, and he talked about building momentum to do what you want to do.
I didn’t realize this but that is what I would do to make things happen for me. If you can get enough momentum to feel proud of what you’re doing and eventually create a good habit, then you’ve overcome an obstacle. Trust me, bad habits are obstacles.
So don’t look at beating a bad habit as hard, look at it as breathing a new habit using momentum so you do the right thing. Maybe it’s something you really want.
If you fall off the wagon, don’t stress it, just build the momentum back and try again!! Maybe this time with a new strategy. A new plan can help build new momentum.
So hang in there, you can be better.